30 January 2008
Derailment, Weather Play Havoc in Vancouver
Canadian Pacific Railway grain car derailment site by Burrard
Inlet.
Vancouver British Columbia - Chaos reigned in Vancouver
yesterday amid heavy snowfall that caused massive commuter delays, closed schools, and cancelled flights.
A CP train derailed, with far-reaching impact on other transportation lines, although it was undetermined whether the
incident was related to the snow.
According to Environment Canada, the Lower Mainland was hit with up to 20 centimetres of snow yesterday. Translink did not have extra
buses or drivers on the road as commuters left their cars home and crowded public transport, spokesman Drew Snider said.
"We were pushed to the limit with the number of buses. There are no extra buses to put out there today," he said.
Late to work or class, residents stood in snaking lines, waiting up to a half hour just to get on the bus platform in some areas.
"Is it realistic to expect the system to work a hundred percent?" Mr. Snider asked. "It will run as best as possible
with traffic, accidents, snow, and weather conditions. It gets through as well as it can." He advised people to dress warmly, be
patient, and expect delays.
Translink did have a snow plan in effect, he added. Staff were salting and sanding the bus loops, drivers were going to work early, and
SkyTrain attendants arrived early to ride the trains and take over if necessary, Mr. Snider said.
He said that heavy, wet snow falling on the tracks causes automatic sensors to stop because they "think" someone or something
fell through. Attendants could override the system, but the trains were slow because of human reaction time, he said.
Around 2 a.m. yesterday, a westbound Canadian Pacific Railway freight train carrying barley derailed in Vancouver, on the shores of
Burrard Inlet.
Three cars were damaged but the two drivers were not injured.
CP officials and the Transportation Safety Board is investigating the cause.
All West Coast Express trains were forced to halt at Coquitlam Station because of the derailment, said Doug Kelsey, president and CEO
of Skytrain and West Coast Express. Translink owns West Coast Express trains and the SkyTrain light rail system.
About 5,000 train commuters head into Vancouver from that direction and most were shuttled onto 25 Translink buses that arrived over
half-hour stretches, Mr. Kelsey said. They transported passengers to Braid Station.
A trip that usually takes 20 minutes took more than an hour.
"There was a foot of snow everywhere, but people were calm. It took people longer to get to their destination but they were in
good spirits, very amiable," said Mr. Kelsey, who was on scene after the derailment.
He added that the derailment would likely not be cleared by last night.
The Coquitlam-to-Mission line will still be in operation and full services were expected to resume in the morning, said
Breanne Feigel, CP Rail spokeswoman.
"CP remains the safest rail in North America. We take pride in that," Ms. Feigel added.
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